Les Jours Heureux-The Paris Summer Olympics 2024

This was the last week of a special exhibit in the Hôtel de Ville, the Town Hall, in Paris about the 2024 Paris Summer Olympics and Paralympics.

James Mayo, our 2009 Study Abroad French teacher, is here visiting and went with me to see the exhibit.

Olympic Rings and Paralympic Ajitos

Olympic Medals

Olympic Torch

At the heart of each medal is a piece of the Eiffel Tower. Have you heard that athletes are asking for their medals to be replaced? The medals, and especially the bronze medals, have been corroding rapidly. The Paris Mint determined that the varnish coating the medals is defective and is busy replacing them.

We were very excited to see the Dior dress worn by Axelle Saint-Cirel, a mezzo-soprano from Guadeloupe representing Marianne, the symbol of the French Republic. She sang the Marseillaise, the French national anthem, from the top of the Grand Palais during the Opening Ceremonies. Her performance and the dress were stunning.

Marianne Dress

We also saw the Dior dress worn by Celine Dion who sang Edith Piaf's Hymne a l'Amour from the Eiffel Tower. Edith Piaf wrote this tragic love song in September 1949 as a tribute to her lover, Marcel Cerdan, a famous French boxer and hero. The next month, she was in New York City performing and awaiting Cerdan's arrival from Paris when he died in a plane crash. Piaf was devastated and the country mourned the death of a hero.

Celine Dion's Dress

There were many pictures and videos from the Olympics and Paralympics. It was fun to relive the memories.

View of Léon Marchand
French Swimmer who won
4 Gold Medals and 1 Bronze

Olympic Mascot in front of
Place de la Concorde

The Olympic mascot creators were inspired by the famous Phrygian cap worn by French revolutionaries, which is a symbol of freedom. Les Jours Heureux were truly happy days and it was a fun little exhibit to see along with many proud Parisians.

Afterwards, we walked down rue to Rivoli towards the Louvre to the Tour Saint Jacques. This is all that is left from Saint-Jacques-de-la-Boucherie church that once stood at the site. During the French Revolution, it was demolished and the stones sold. But the tower was saved because of its Flamboyant Gothic architecture and because the scientist Blaise Pascal conducted experiments on atmospheric pressure from the top of the tower. The tower is a traditional starting place for pilgrimages to Saint Jacques de Compostelle in Spain (Santiago de Compostela).

James at the Tour Saint Jacques

The name James is Jacques in French, so it is James's namesake tower. So of course we needed his picture at la Tour Saint Jacques.